A Twisted world
by Tolleren
Summary: Camelot has fallen and there is nothing left other than to run, hoping a brighter future is before them than the death and destruction they left behind. Pre series AU. Royal!Merlin
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**AN: This is unbeta'ed and written on my mobile. I will update the chapters with corrected ones - and continue - if anyone is interested. Enjoy.**

**I don't own Merlin**

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A horn sounded behind them as they stumbled through the undergrowth. The howls that followed couldn't have been more foreboding, even if they had come from the Black Hound itself. Shouts echoed in the surrounding cliffs and made it nearly impossible to pinpoint a direction. Instead they just continued to run blindly forwards, unsure if they headed towards freedom or into a trap.

Soon the sound of hoofbeats and victory yells coming from in front of them made it clear it had been the last one, and drove them back, deeper into the woods.

They zigzagged through the trees, nearly tripping when they looked over their shoulders, dreading what they would see. No thoughts filled their heads, only their instinctual need to survive drove their hurting legs to continue and ignore their burning lungs' wish for a break. Until, finally, the sound of their hunters disappeared, only leaving the silence of the woods and their thundering heartbeat behind, and they both collapsed to the ground.

The many weeks of being hunted like animals had taught them to push their body past their limits, and thereby outlived things that should have been impossible, but it all came with a price. They were both sickly thin and together with their ruined clothes, once rich and colourful, now covered in dirt and grime, made it look like they were wandering scarecrows.

"What now?" The first one asked as he had finally regained his breath.

The other one just shook his head.

After several tense minutes he stood up, swaying a little on his still unstable legs. He ran a hand through his golden hair with a sigh. "We need to rest. Find some food." He looked around and pointed around them. "I will scout the area to see if I can find some water."

He started to walk away when the other man stopped him.

"Arthur"

He turned back around slowly. His friend's tone was soft, but his eyes shone with determination.

"It was his own choice."

Arthur shook his head, in denial or something else his companion wasn't sure.

"He was still one of my men, still my responsibility!" Arthur countered.

"Sir Ethan chose to give his life for you. It is what knights are trained to do; protect their leader!"

Arthur looked at his last standing knight. Sir Leon, only a few years older than Arthur, had been his father's first knight for years. He was a skilled fighter and a loyal friend. He had even been the one to teach Arthur swordplay, until the young prince finally beat his teacher, where the knight had been the first to congratulate his student, all the while giving him a proud smile, that later encouraged Arthur to trust himself every time a new problem arose.

This time, though, he knew it wouldn't be enough.

"Not anymore."

Then he turned around again, and quickly let the forest hide him from his friend's disappointed gaze.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**An: Thanks for the support. People seem to like the story, so I will finish it. Again – will be corrected when my Beta gets the time.**

**I usually write 'long' chapters (2-3.000 words) but I wanted to try shorter chapters – but with more action/not so many details. I hope I succeeded? :)**

**I don't own Merlin**

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The next day was spent sneaking though the very same woods they had run through yesterday.

They hadn't seen any signs of neither horse nor hound the whole day, but they wouldn't take any chances and had decided to cover their tracks before doing anything else.

There wasn't much they could do. They had blindly thrown themselves through the bushes, and their chosen path was easy to follow.

They could cover up their footsteps, but broken twigs and crushed plants weren't easy to hide. Instead they gave up and stated to create new tracks instead.

An hour later the forest was filled with different trails crossing each other, circling around trees only to suddenly end as they had jumped up into the trees or backtrack to their starting point.

They would be lying if they had said they hadn't been laughing in all the madness. They were nearly sad that they wouldn't see how the dogs would run around whining, while their trackers would get more frustrated every second. As a last touch they smeared some blood from a freshly caught rabbit on their hands and feet, hoping they could cover up the last remaining stench.

As they finally were on the road again it was with a better mood than they had had in days. Hope filled their hearts once more, death momentary forgotten, and there was a new lightness in their steps that hadn't been there before.

The sun was shining from a light blue sky and that itself was a difference from the grey rainy days and cold autumn nights they had had before. It was as if Mother Nature was laughing together with them.

The sky was beginning to darkening by the time they broke free from the thick forest and laid eyes on the first village in days.

"Where do you think we are?" Leon asked, but Arthur didn't have an answer. He only knew they were north for Camelot. A great many smaller kingdoms laid up here, but as they were too weak to be any threat nor any important products to trade with, he had never been in any of them, and knew too little to be able to point out which of them they had ended in. And so he ended up just giving a shrug.

In the village the farmers were slowly arriving back from the fields, but drunken laughter could already be heard from the local tavern.

A warm meal and a tankard of mead sounded like heaven after living for weeks on half-raw meat as it had been too dangerous to light a real fire.

They decided to try their luck. They had no money only a single rabbit-skin, and even as they had tried to wash up a little in a nearby stream, only so much could be done without a prober bath and clean clothes.

As they entered most of the men, not used to many new visitors, looked up. Suspicion evident in their eyes, and a hush fell over the crowd.

"Hu a' ye strangers 'sturb'n me tav'n?"

The question came from the barkeeper, a bear of a man, and Arthur suddenly wondered if coming here had been such a good idea after all.

Arthur had to blink once at the strange accent, like the man had something stock in his throat, before forcing a smile on his face and tried to relax his tense shoulders. To his right Leon did the same, but as Arthur thought, with much more success.

"We are simply travellers wishing for a little to strengthen us on, before we continue on our way." He tried to say it in a dismissive and calm tone, but was unsure if it worked.

Leon shifted his stance slightly beside him, and the barkeeper narrowed his eyes, but led them to a table.

As they sat down, Arthur could feel eyes on his back and turned his head as discreetly as possible. There was only one table, occupied by four cloaked people. None of them seemed interested in him, instead they were whispering together. Maybe they were druids? – Arthur had often heart his farther talking about them. _"Be careful out there son. The druids live out in those woods. They only bring dead and destruction wherever they go." "Practisers of the devil the lots of them, only the flames can save their souls." "Magic corrupts even the most innocent child, always remember that"_

Surely they could use magic to watch them without really looking? – He had heard they could read ones thoughts.

Arthur shuddered and turned back towards Leon.

Not long after they had been fed with good broth and given a warm drink, and they had begun to relax once more.

Sadly it didn't last for long.

"Me mon'y?" The barkeeper grumbled from behind the former prince. Arthur definitely didn't jump, he was merely a little ... Startled that's all.

Arthur slowly turned his head, the easy smile on his face so big it hurt.

"Well we-"

"No mon'y!?" A few of the other costumers had now again talking and interest in their conversation.

Before either Leon or Arthur could do anything more, the barkeeper had nodded to a few other big men and the two friends soon found themselves surrounded and dragged outside, the barkeeper following close behind.

They were pushed to ground by two of the men, and held there. The barkeeper walked up before them an gave them a dark grin. Not for the first time Arthur wished they hadn't lost their swords, it would be much more difficult to fight them without any kind weapon.

"I sho' ye wha' wi do to pe'pl th'nkin the' can trick me fo me mon'y."

Arthur looked at Leon and caught his gaze, giving him a silent messaged to wait until his signal. The men not holding them took a step closer, making ready to strike.

The man before Arthur lifted his arm back; Arthur tensed waiting for the right moment, Leon following his example – and they were all interrupted by a new voice calling out to them.

"Can I help you with anything, my good men?"

Arthur opened his mouth slightly in shock – one of the cloaked persons from the tavern stood before him. His friends standing protectively in a half circle behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Oh see – an update! :D**

**I have a little break before the exams start Monday, so I give you another chapter! (Will be updated with a corrected vision ASAP)**

**Thanks for the support. Remember to review if you have any good advice/or otherwise something you wish to share :) **

**I don't own Merlin**

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The barkeeper narrowed his eyes in anger, and his companions shifted a little to confront the possible new threat. Sadly, they still kept their main focus on the captives, so Arthur didn't dare try something before knowing whose side the cloaked strangers were on.

"Ye cu'd get out of me wai befor' –. " He stopped midsentence, his eyes widening and his skin turned a deadly pale, as the person, instead of answering or turning away, chose to reach up and lift his hood and exposing his face.

Arthur stared at the young man standing before him - two crystal blue eyes looked back, a strange fire burning within them.

The barkeeper began to stutter something incomprehensible until the blue-eyed man tossed him a back of gold coins which the barkeeper caught. He and his men all hurried back into the tavern, but not without first giving Arthur a death-blare over the shoulder, making it quite clear that he should never come back.

"Well …" the blue-eyed stranger turned towards the two former knights, "that was very close, my friend!" He shot Arthur a big grin, making him look younger than he had first appeared. Arthur frowned.

"I don't know you …"

"Of cause not – we have never met before, though …"

"… and still you called me 'friend'?!" Arthur finished with a snort. The stranger just looked a little confused.

"Well, I was trying to be nice … But if you behave too much of an arse to see that …"

Arthur gave a strangled snort in surprise. No one had ever spoken to him in that way, and now the stranger just stood there and insulted him … He really was beginning to get tired of this town. They should have stayed back in the woods.

He turned around and signalled to Leon to do the same. He would away from there as quickly as possible, before he decided to hit the strange and caused a scene.

Sadly the stranger didn't think the same.

"Hey!"

Running steps followed him, but he didn't turn to look. He sped up his step.

An arm caught his arm and turned him around. Once again was Arthur face to face with the young stranger.

The man shook his head at him. "If you don't want to thank me for saving your ungrateful backside, the least you can do is to tell me your name!" The possible druid, said, while simultaneously lifting an eyebrow.

Arthur blinked rather surprised. _His name?_ He couldn't tell this, 'may be magic-user', his name! He opened his mouth to say exactly that, when he discovered that Merlin's attention no longer was directed to his answer but instead on the arm he had grabbed, or rather the hand attached to it.

Arthur followed his gaze and cursed inside his head. _Why did everything just go wrong these days?_

On his middle finger sat, for everyone to see, his royal seal.

He had forgotten to take it off before they went into the tavern. The ones who hunted them before already knew his identity, and he was therefore not used to have to hide it. He just hoped the stranger wouldn't recognize it.

For a few seconds no one moved. Then the stranger slowly lifted his gaze and stepped back.

"Well, well, seems we have gotten a prince to accompany us."


End file.
